Shia Lebouf makes Sonic go super&excl;

Lately Sonic the Hedgehog hasn't been doing too well. With Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyricbeing the worst selling Sonic game in history, SEGA had to do something crazy to get some positive attention on the blue blur. Luckily they found the perfect amount of crazy to do it. Or should I say the perfect crazy person to do it. Earlier this week SEGA released a video both their official channel and their YouTube channel titled "Shia Lebouf DLC."

"Sega in the '90s was known for its brand, but after that, we've lost trust, and we're left with nothing but reputation ... We'd like to win back the trust and become a brand once again."

The video, titled Shia Lebouf DLC, shows a modified version of the games final confrontation with the Eggmen. Only difference is this time Sonic has the support of "Hollywood Superstar Shia Labouf!"

While this isn't the '90s Sonic that I know and love, I'm still more excited for this than Sonic Boom 2 (don't worry it's not a thing yet. Let's hope it never becomes so). The game that the cut scene, taken from Sonic Generations, was well received by critics and gamers alike and is considered to be the "last good Sonic game". The game featured the triumphant return of the classic "pudgy" Sonic and his 2-D platforming roots, as well as the cool and edgy modern Sonic who could switch between 2-D and 3-D styles of play.

SEGA plans to release a new Sonic game for home consoles at the Tokyo Game Show. Whether or not Shia Lebouf will make an appearance is yet to be seen.

What do you guys think? Is this a good marketing strategy by SEGA? Why Shia Labouf? Should Sonic just let it go? Let me know in the comments below!

A senior at the University of Central Arkansas with a major in creative writing and a minor in art&period; I've been playing games for longer than I can remember and have a true passion for all things gaming&period; I also have a HUGE weakness for chili dogs and redheads&period;

While everyone tends to bash the Sonic series for a while now, I actually think that Sega was being a lot more brave than other game series have been. In my Rewind Review series for Metroid I noticed that the game peaked at Metroid: Fusion/Metroid Prime, and since then the series has slowly decayed since it refused to do anything different. It is actually one of the reasons I think Other M and Federation Force are going to be looked back upon fondly (if not for plot, than at least for what they did for the series) in the future.

Sonic on the other hand peaked early with Sonic 2/3. As such they had to make something new since they already made the perfect 2D Sonic. There is little else to be done with the 2D Sonic formula (and it shows in Sonic CD which feels almost identical to previous titles), and so Sonic Adventure was made. Sonic Adventure was actually a great game thanks to its Tony Hawk style points system (which people forget was the main feature of the game, not the platforming and speed). The game was all about being flashy. Sonic Unleashed (sonic stages, not the terrible werewolf) focused on speed over platforming which created something different as well.

I think Sonic's main problem is the fans/brand. Your character's name is Sonic, as such people expect fast paced gameplay. However, people who played the original Sonic want the momentum-based platforming they originally had. As such no one is satisfied no matter what a Sonic game does. It's also the reason Generations was so good - it did both, and effectively shut everyone up.

In the end, the series is - under a certain viewpoint - long since "dead". What it needs is to be resurrected under a concrete definition of what "Sonic" is.